IL Physician Named 'Country Doctor of the Year'

Neil Nelson, MD, wears many hats in Gibson City, the east-central Illinois town of 3,400 or so souls where he grew up and now practices primary care.

In addition to being an internist and pediatrician, Nelson, 53, is a licensed pharmacist. He has a deputy sheriff's Stetson that he dons occasionally as a volunteer auxiliary police officer with the Ford County Sheriff's Department. And when he's not helping the sheriff,  Nelson can be found helping his 77-year-old mother with various farm chores on their nearby acreage.

Of course, Nelson never takes off his doctor hat. Even when he's working at law enforcement or farming, Nelson remains on call 24/7 to attend to the 5,000 or so active patients in his practice. And even though he concedes he is something of a dinosaur, Nelson's not complaining.  

"This is something you have to enjoy and if you don't enjoy it don't get into it," says Nelson, who in December was named the winner of the 2012 Country Doctor of the Year award.

"Pick a different specialty where you don't have to work 24/7. Pick a sub-specialty where you can work 8-5 with time off without any worries," he says. "But if you like patients and you want to have your own practice and you want to be a doctor like in the old days, go ahead and do this. You just have to be aware of the commitment that is necessary for this type of practice."

The annual Country Doctor of the Year Award has been around since 1992 and "recognizes the spirit, skill, and dedication of rural medical practitioners" in communities of 30,000 or less.

"Dr. Nelson is a true home town hero," said Sean Ebner, president of Staff Care, which sponsors the award. "He is both an integral part of healthcare in the community he grew up in as well as one of its most caring private citizens."

Nelson grew up in Gibson City, located about 120 miles south of Chicago. From an early age he knew he wanted to be a doctor, a farmer, a pharmacist, and a cop.

"I had always wanted to go to medical school since I was five years old. And then a pharmacist came to our school during professions day and a doctor came after that. I thought it'd be good to have a pharmacy background before I went to medical school," he says.

With the guidance and support of pharmacy and physician mentors in Gibson City, Nelson first went to pharmacy school and worked in that field for a couple of years before going to medical school. He says being a pharmacist has helped his medical practice.

"I am not afraid to use medications when they come out," he says. "With aging patients or with kids, a lot of physicians don't have the background in pharmacy like I do, so they are afraid to give medications. Being a pharmacist I learned how to use the medications properly and when to use them in certain medical cases and I feel comfortable with medications. A surgeon has a scalpel. Well, I have my pen to order medications that make people well and I don't hesitate when it comes to that."

Nelson says the decision to return home to practice medicine made him anxious. "At first I was scared to come back here because I didn't know what the perception of the people in the community would be to a hometown boy who they had watched going through high school," he says.

"Sometimes people don't consider the people who grow up in their hometown in a professional way and they might be uncomfortable going to a physician in their hometown because they've known you your whole life and watched you grow up and feel too close to you as a friend to come to you as a doctor," he says.

"But when I came here, it was mostly just the opposite. I attracted people in my office because I was from the community and they trusted me."

Being rooted in a small town also gives Nelson the opportunity to fulfill another childhood dream of becoming a volunteer sheriff's deputy. "Sometimes you get bored doing the same thing over and over again and it gives me a chance to get out and do something different so I can keep my concentration when I come back to work," he says.

"I enjoy being involved in emergency situations and helping folks. Sometimes it's a problem if you are involved in a call and one of the people doing something illegal is one of your patients. Then it is hard, but you have to switch hats and do the right thing and hope they'll understand."

Of course, being a hometown hero can be a double-edged sword.

"Everybody knows who you are. Whenever I go I will run into somebody I know. And when I come back to the office a patient will say 'I heard where you were the other day,'" Nelson says.

"I had a secret girlfriend in Danville (46 miles away) that I didn't tell anybody about but as soon as I got there I ran into somebody from Gibson City. It's pretty hard. You get stopped in the grocery store. I get mobbed by my patients who want to know about tests and reports and just to talk to me. A lot of patients get a good feeling talking to their doctor. It's almost like being a celebrity."

With so many commitments, Nelson hasn't taken a vacation in 12 years. "People get so upset when I leave town because they don't feel they get as good a service from other doctors," he says.

"I just have a close attachment to most of my patients. I give them my phone number and they can call me 24/7 whenever they have a problem or a question. I just feel like I have an obligation to my patients. They are almost like my family since I am not married and I don't have any children."

Winning the Country Doctor of the Year award means that Staff Care will pay a temporary physician to cover Nelson's practice for a couple of weeks. Nelson says he's going to take advantage of the offer.  

"I don't know where I'll go, but people have recommended Hawaii. I wouldn't mind going to Europe. I've always wanted to do that."